What do you think?
Rate this book
The Lost Scrolls #1-4
The Lost Scrolls Collection
When the Avatar disappeared a hundred years ago, the Fire Nation attacked. All hope was lost . . . until the arrival of Aang, a twelve-year-old Airbender, who reveals himself as the new Avatar. And he must now save the world from being dominated by the Fire Nation.
256 pages, Library Binding
First published June 23, 2009
21 people are currently reading
1306 people want to read
About the author
Michael Teitelbaum
554 books51 followersMichael Teitelbaum has been a writer and editor of children’s books for more than thirty years. He worked on staff as an editor at Golden Books, Grossett & Dunlop, and Macmillan. In addition to The Scary States of America, Michael’s fiction work includes The Very Hungry Zombie: A Parody, and The Very Thirsty Vampire: A Parody both done with artist extraordinaire Jon Apple, published by Skyhorse. His non-fiction work includes writing Jackie Robinson: Champion for Equality, published by Sterling, and The Baseball Hall of Fame, a 2-volume encyclopedia, published by Grolier. He is also the series editor of Great Escapes, true-life acts of incredible courage, published by Harper Collins.
Michael has always had an interest in the paranormal, despite a rather normal childhood in Brooklyn, NY. These days, Michael lives with his wife, Sheleigah, and two talkative cats in an (as yet unhaunted) 180-year-old farmhouse in the beautiful Catskill Mountains of upstate New York.
Michael has always had an interest in the paranormal, despite a rather normal childhood in Brooklyn, NY. These days, Michael lives with his wife, Sheleigah, and two talkative cats in an (as yet unhaunted) 180-year-old farmhouse in the beautiful Catskill Mountains of upstate New York.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
April 24, 2021
Avatar the Last Airbender, book 1
episodes divided in 4 element-related sections
It's sweet if you're a fan of Avatarverse, but the writing style is very simple, not novel-like, no emotional explaining. just telling the stories briefly.
Katara, Aang, Sokka & Zuko are the narrators, in between, some information about all the nations & their cultures.
though I expected to read something other than the episodes, but you know I always appreciate to see a good novelization of my favourite shows, to read the plot on paper.
good times.
episodes divided in 4 element-related sections
It's sweet if you're a fan of Avatarverse, but the writing style is very simple, not novel-like, no emotional explaining. just telling the stories briefly.
Katara, Aang, Sokka & Zuko are the narrators, in between, some information about all the nations & their cultures.
though I expected to read something other than the episodes, but you know I always appreciate to see a good novelization of my favourite shows, to read the plot on paper.
good times.
December 29, 2018
Ok, I'm overhyped with Avatar the Last Airbender (again) and I'm reading everything I can get my hands on... Which is not necessarily a good idea.
This book, published primarily for 7-to-12-year-olds, consists of novelizations of certain episodes with some information on the four nations of the fictional world the show takes place in.
The episodes are re-told in first person, from a different point of view of different characters (Aang, Katara, Sokka, or Zuko) which at first intrigued me, until I realized that the first person narration doesn't really add anything new. It is the most interesting in Zuko's case, as the viewer is less familiar with his thought process. I was still disappointed however, because the author of the book chose the most simplistic interpretations of Zuko's actions. For example,
The additional material was mostly nothing new if you remember the show. They did add one or two fun facts I didn't know about, like how Earthbenders could "magnetize their limbs to stone, allowing them to climb sheer walls or cliffs". How cool is that? Maybe they did use it in season 2, actually - I can't remember (I'm still at season 1).
Anyway, I do not recommend this book. You can learn all the factoids you need from the Avatar Wiki page (which is very extensive!) and you can just watch the episodes. I do understand how younger readers might enjoy this book, though.
This book, published primarily for 7-to-12-year-olds, consists of novelizations of certain episodes with some information on the four nations of the fictional world the show takes place in.
The episodes are re-told in first person, from a different point of view of different characters (Aang, Katara, Sokka, or Zuko) which at first intrigued me, until I realized that the first person narration doesn't really add anything new. It is the most interesting in Zuko's case, as the viewer is less familiar with his thought process. I was still disappointed however, because the author of the book chose the most simplistic interpretations of Zuko's actions. For example,
The additional material was mostly nothing new if you remember the show. They did add one or two fun facts I didn't know about, like how Earthbenders could "magnetize their limbs to stone, allowing them to climb sheer walls or cliffs". How cool is that? Maybe they did use it in season 2, actually - I can't remember (I'm still at season 1).
Anyway, I do not recommend this book. You can learn all the factoids you need from the Avatar Wiki page (which is very extensive!) and you can just watch the episodes. I do understand how younger readers might enjoy this book, though.
May 8, 2013
Four sacred and dangerous scrolls have been complied into this single book, detailing the adventures of Aang and his friends. The Fire Nation has waged war against the rest of the world for one hundred years, unhindered by the peacekeeping Avatar. Then Katara and her brother, Sokka, discover a young Airbender named Aang. Could he be the one the whole world has been looking for? And will he be able to face his destiny?
So, this particular book is actually a collection of four books. This collection of stories covers the first season of the show, and includes almost every episode. The stories are arranged by Scroll/element, and then chronologically. I didn’t mind this at first, but towards the end of this book, I was tired of chronologically jumping back and forth whenever I switched which Scroll I was on. I understand why the book was structured this way, but it still was a little frustrating.
Each Scroll has three stories in it, for a total of twelve. The Point of View alternatives, so Katara, Sokka, and Aang each get a chance to narrate, and Zuko even gets a story. I enjoyed being able to be in each of their heads, and it was neat to see their insights. I felt as if the writer had seen the show, and I felt like the writer understood the Gaang. There were even some neat little insights.
These stories follow the episodes pretty closely, and this book is written with much more skill than TokyoPop’s Avatar Volumes. The writing is for a younger audience, so be prepared for that, but it still is good. The downside is I know this episode well enough to tell when something was skipped over, and it pulled me out some each time, but I realize that’s just me being nitpicky, for the most part. There were also some stupid mistakes that should not have been made, and I’m not sure how they were made, with the writer seeming to know the show so well.
After each story, there was some extra content, which was neat as well.
The Introduction hails back to the opening of the show, but gives a little more depth, and works quite nicely as the opening to this collection of tales.
I’m not going to review each story separately, as my praise for each is nearly the same, and has been stated above. However, there are some nitpicky things I can’t help but mention. And there WILL BE SPOILERS!!! if you haven’t seen the show. If you’ve seen the show, there’s nothing to be spoiled about.
For the first section, on Water:
My first real issue is with the extra content after the first story, with the section on the Water Scroll. Sure, the Water Scroll was valuable, but I don’t think it’s as big of a deal as this section makes it out to be. The scroll is legend now? Also, I don’t think that particular bending move was lost forever with the scroll missing. Katara simply had no formal training, and so would have had no way of knowing the move before finding the scroll.
The extra content after Bato of the Water Tribe is pretty good, though it makes me wonder about the Ice Dodging tradition, and the marks each person receives. I don’t feel as if everybody would be given the same marks each time, but these extra content acts as if that is the case. The reason I question this is because of the Mark of the Trusted. This book states the mark is given to outsiders, but how often do the Water Tribes really have outsiders come with them on their rite of passage? I wouldn’t think it happens too often, especially in a time of war.
In The Water Bending Master, this story was trying to cover too much, and it felt more like a summary than an actual story. Katara’s fight with Pakku and Yue’s death were glossed over because we were in Aang’s head, and those points of the story shouldn’t have been told by him, really. I did enjoy being in Aang’s head for the big battle with the Fire Nation, but there was just too much crammed into this story for it to work well, and for me to really enjoy it.
For the section on Earth:
Just a side note on the note for The Great Divide… “One memorable adventure through the Earth Kingdom…” Memorable? Really? The creators of the show even made fun of this episode and how unmemorable it is.
For the extra content about the Great Divide, it is stated the canyon should not be crossed without the Earthbender guide, for only he can “re-create missing sections of the trail”. So, no other earthbender is capable of doing that? Just him?
Also, for that same section, it mentions the Gan Jins’ sacred orb is shrouded in mystery, and there are rumors “that the orb may not have existed at all, or that if it did, it was just a simple toy for children”. Okay… Aang admitted he made up the story about it being just a children’s game. So, it obviously was NOT a child’s toy.
For the section on Fire:
Now for The Fire Temple. How Aang returned from the Spirit World is not what happened in the show… I get cutting out some stuff, as this story combines two episodes, but I feel as if Aang’s return could have been done better.
Also, when it came to the Gaang tricking the Fire Sages to thinking Aang was inside the sanctuary in the Fire Temple… The whole point of Momo being in there was to help convince the other Sages Aang was in there, with his shadow at the doorway. That wasn’t explained at all, but a point is still made to mention Momo is inside when the doors are opened.
Now to The Blue Spirit. When Aang and the Blue Spirit are escaping from Admiral Zhao, and Zhao says, “He [the Avatar] must be captured alive!” things get a little confusing. Zuko uses Aang as a shield and grasps his swords firmly, which shocks and scares Aang. This makes no sense. In the show, Zuko places his two swords at Aang’s neck, which I think is what is supposed to be happening here. However, no matter how I read this part of the story, there is nothing to tell the reader this.
For the last section on Air:
I have a complaint with The Storm. So, Aang rescues Sokka and the fisherman, and then a wave knocks everybody underwater. Then Aang is able to save them all, on his own… Wrong! In the show, he went into the Avatar State.
For the extra content after this story, there is mention of an Air Nomad custom to tell the Avatar who he or she is at the age of sixteen. No. This is a custom practiced all over the world, and not just with Air Benders.
In the extra content after The Northern Air Temple, it states “Air was the most important natural resource to Airbenders. Without air, they were powerless.” Wait, what? Without air, they’re not only powerless, they’re DEAD. That’s just common sense, right there.
So, I have quite a few nitpicks, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy this book. For the most part, it was well-written, and I loved the way everything was presented, as if it was some big secret. I’m glad I bought this, and reading it has made me want to watch the show over again.
So, this particular book is actually a collection of four books. This collection of stories covers the first season of the show, and includes almost every episode. The stories are arranged by Scroll/element, and then chronologically. I didn’t mind this at first, but towards the end of this book, I was tired of chronologically jumping back and forth whenever I switched which Scroll I was on. I understand why the book was structured this way, but it still was a little frustrating.
Each Scroll has three stories in it, for a total of twelve. The Point of View alternatives, so Katara, Sokka, and Aang each get a chance to narrate, and Zuko even gets a story. I enjoyed being able to be in each of their heads, and it was neat to see their insights. I felt as if the writer had seen the show, and I felt like the writer understood the Gaang. There were even some neat little insights.
These stories follow the episodes pretty closely, and this book is written with much more skill than TokyoPop’s Avatar Volumes. The writing is for a younger audience, so be prepared for that, but it still is good. The downside is I know this episode well enough to tell when something was skipped over, and it pulled me out some each time, but I realize that’s just me being nitpicky, for the most part. There were also some stupid mistakes that should not have been made, and I’m not sure how they were made, with the writer seeming to know the show so well.
After each story, there was some extra content, which was neat as well.
The Introduction hails back to the opening of the show, but gives a little more depth, and works quite nicely as the opening to this collection of tales.
I’m not going to review each story separately, as my praise for each is nearly the same, and has been stated above. However, there are some nitpicky things I can’t help but mention. And there WILL BE SPOILERS!!! if you haven’t seen the show. If you’ve seen the show, there’s nothing to be spoiled about.
For the first section, on Water:
My first real issue is with the extra content after the first story, with the section on the Water Scroll. Sure, the Water Scroll was valuable, but I don’t think it’s as big of a deal as this section makes it out to be. The scroll is legend now? Also, I don’t think that particular bending move was lost forever with the scroll missing. Katara simply had no formal training, and so would have had no way of knowing the move before finding the scroll.
The extra content after Bato of the Water Tribe is pretty good, though it makes me wonder about the Ice Dodging tradition, and the marks each person receives. I don’t feel as if everybody would be given the same marks each time, but these extra content acts as if that is the case. The reason I question this is because of the Mark of the Trusted. This book states the mark is given to outsiders, but how often do the Water Tribes really have outsiders come with them on their rite of passage? I wouldn’t think it happens too often, especially in a time of war.
In The Water Bending Master, this story was trying to cover too much, and it felt more like a summary than an actual story. Katara’s fight with Pakku and Yue’s death were glossed over because we were in Aang’s head, and those points of the story shouldn’t have been told by him, really. I did enjoy being in Aang’s head for the big battle with the Fire Nation, but there was just too much crammed into this story for it to work well, and for me to really enjoy it.
For the section on Earth:
Just a side note on the note for The Great Divide… “One memorable adventure through the Earth Kingdom…” Memorable? Really? The creators of the show even made fun of this episode and how unmemorable it is.
For the extra content about the Great Divide, it is stated the canyon should not be crossed without the Earthbender guide, for only he can “re-create missing sections of the trail”. So, no other earthbender is capable of doing that? Just him?
Also, for that same section, it mentions the Gan Jins’ sacred orb is shrouded in mystery, and there are rumors “that the orb may not have existed at all, or that if it did, it was just a simple toy for children”. Okay… Aang admitted he made up the story about it being just a children’s game. So, it obviously was NOT a child’s toy.
For the section on Fire:
Now for The Fire Temple. How Aang returned from the Spirit World is not what happened in the show… I get cutting out some stuff, as this story combines two episodes, but I feel as if Aang’s return could have been done better.
Also, when it came to the Gaang tricking the Fire Sages to thinking Aang was inside the sanctuary in the Fire Temple… The whole point of Momo being in there was to help convince the other Sages Aang was in there, with his shadow at the doorway. That wasn’t explained at all, but a point is still made to mention Momo is inside when the doors are opened.
Now to The Blue Spirit. When Aang and the Blue Spirit are escaping from Admiral Zhao, and Zhao says, “He [the Avatar] must be captured alive!” things get a little confusing. Zuko uses Aang as a shield and grasps his swords firmly, which shocks and scares Aang. This makes no sense. In the show, Zuko places his two swords at Aang’s neck, which I think is what is supposed to be happening here. However, no matter how I read this part of the story, there is nothing to tell the reader this.
For the last section on Air:
I have a complaint with The Storm. So, Aang rescues Sokka and the fisherman, and then a wave knocks everybody underwater. Then Aang is able to save them all, on his own… Wrong! In the show, he went into the Avatar State.
For the extra content after this story, there is mention of an Air Nomad custom to tell the Avatar who he or she is at the age of sixteen. No. This is a custom practiced all over the world, and not just with Air Benders.
In the extra content after The Northern Air Temple, it states “Air was the most important natural resource to Airbenders. Without air, they were powerless.” Wait, what? Without air, they’re not only powerless, they’re DEAD. That’s just common sense, right there.
So, I have quite a few nitpicks, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy this book. For the most part, it was well-written, and I loved the way everything was presented, as if it was some big secret. I’m glad I bought this, and reading it has made me want to watch the show over again.
June 20, 2020
Honestly, it is not fair for me to rate this as I am still riding the high of ATLA being brought back into my life via Netflix, but I'm gonna do it anyway.
I recently discovered that there were comics that continued from where the TV series left off and I have since read every one that I could get my hands on, so when I saw this available via ebook from my local library, I immediately checked it out. I was expecting a more behind-the-scenes feel rather than just a recount of everything we learned about the history and culture of this world in the first season of the show.
Not knowing the publication date of The Lost Scrolls, my expectations were unreasonably high. I wanted a more in-depth look on specific nation's/bending history and military backstory on the 100 year war, so when I read a watered down version of Book One, I was disappointed. The pictures were cute, and if I got my hands on these when I was 10 or 11 when I first started watching the show, I may have asked my parents for them for birthday presents.
Also if I hadn't just re-watched the show on Netflix for the third time and maybe just used this bind-up as a refresher before trying to give LoK a shot, I probably would have been more generous with my rating...
Let your young children read these, but if you grew up watching and loving the show but want for more ATLA content, you won't get it here.
I recently discovered that there were comics that continued from where the TV series left off and I have since read every one that I could get my hands on, so when I saw this available via ebook from my local library, I immediately checked it out. I was expecting a more behind-the-scenes feel rather than just a recount of everything we learned about the history and culture of this world in the first season of the show.
Not knowing the publication date of The Lost Scrolls, my expectations were unreasonably high. I wanted a more in-depth look on specific nation's/bending history and military backstory on the 100 year war, so when I read a watered down version of Book One, I was disappointed. The pictures were cute, and if I got my hands on these when I was 10 or 11 when I first started watching the show, I may have asked my parents for them for birthday presents.
Also if I hadn't just re-watched the show on Netflix for the third time and maybe just used this bind-up as a refresher before trying to give LoK a shot, I probably would have been more generous with my rating...
Let your young children read these, but if you grew up watching and loving the show but want for more ATLA content, you won't get it here.
August 3, 2021
-i liked that there was more cultural background given that wasn’t explained in the show
-i didn’t read the actual stories bc it just repeats the show and i’ve watched the show too many times lol, so i just read the little passages in between on philosophies and other background
-i think all the stories were from book 1?
-it’s good but it’s definitely written for kids and not a necessary read if you’ve watched the show multiple times
-i didn’t read the actual stories bc it just repeats the show and i’ve watched the show too many times lol, so i just read the little passages in between on philosophies and other background
-i think all the stories were from book 1?
-it’s good but it’s definitely written for kids and not a necessary read if you’ve watched the show multiple times
May 8, 2017
I enjoy this book and like it very much because the book tells me the secrets of each tribe.
February 15, 2018
3.5 stars
May 5, 2019
I think this book is meant for people who have already watched the show. I haven't. So, the sequence of events in the book was a but confusing for me. I'd recommend this for fans of the show.
Currently reading
November 3, 2020Great
August 4, 2023
Doesn't add much to the tv series...
November 1, 2023
3.5 - reads very young, not much new info for those who watched the series
January 13, 2025
A cute book for a nice recap of the first season of avatar.
August 15, 2016
Actual: 3.5 stars.
This book was cool and I liked it. It was cute, and as a companion to the Tv show that I adore, I htought it worked. As a standalone read, not so much. And perhaps I am being too demanding, but I prefer everything I read to be able to hold it's own. Though, as this is a collection of "scrolls" that basically contain information about the four nations, I guess it might be a little unfair of me to want this book to stand by itself, without relying on the show it derives from. Because without some familiarity with the show, it would fall apart, but considering it's supposed to be a companion to the show, I suppose that's alright. (What? That makes no sense. Oh well)
I guess more than that, what I mean is that I didn't want this book to have to use the show (other than the obvious borrowing of characters, and world-building, etc.) I wanted this book to be a fully formulated little compendium of it's own (and many parts of it were), but there were parts where the book relied far too much on the show for my taste and that's where it lost me.
Most of the book is acquired knowledge of the Avatar world, what different nations eat, the cultural practices, how different bending works, etc. And while I think that most of this information is stuff that one could glean from a careful study of the show, I think it's cute all packaged together, and it makes a great souvenir, and a cute book for fans of the show. Wrap it up in a cute little bow and give it to the fans. cool. The rest though, which was a significant, but not the majority, were stories that we had already seen in the show, from a specific character's perspective, and they werwe presented along with the other information, as anecdotal accounts of things. Now I understand why these stories were included. In many books about a specific culture or group of people, you not only have information about their practices and lives and whatnot, but you also have first person accounts describing those things from that perspective. So it does make perfect sense that Sokka would tell us a story about the water tribe, or that Toph would relate on concerning the Earth Kingdom. But to me, it just felt like a cheap way to pad a book. Can't think of new material? Rehash the same events from a new perspective. It feels tired, and I quickly grow bored of writers doing this. I think it would have been much more interesting had the writers come up with new little short stories, involving all the same characters that we know and love from the show, and simply wrote them as though they were moments we didn't get to see in the TV show.
Even though I've been a bit harsh about this book though, I have to say, I did enjoy it. It was a quick, easy and light read, and there wasn't anything new that I really learned about the world of Avatar (I've re-watched the show SOOOO many times though), but it was entertaining to visit a beloved world in a different capacity. And I simply ADORE pretty much anything Avatar. I really did like it, just wanted a teeny bit more original content is all. Oh well, still a cute read, and one I'll keep around.
EDIT: I have decided to do the Around the Year in 52 Books Challenge
This book is going to count for challenge #7 - A book about books.
The Lost Scrolls is a collection of 4 smaller "scrolls" that are supposed to be scrolls concerning the four tribes of the Avatar world, and each of these "scrolls" is basically just a compilation of information on each of the nations. However, since this book is essentially a book that is smaller books about the world of Avatar, I am counting for this challenge.
This book was cool and I liked it. It was cute, and as a companion to the Tv show that I adore, I htought it worked. As a standalone read, not so much. And perhaps I am being too demanding, but I prefer everything I read to be able to hold it's own. Though, as this is a collection of "scrolls" that basically contain information about the four nations, I guess it might be a little unfair of me to want this book to stand by itself, without relying on the show it derives from. Because without some familiarity with the show, it would fall apart, but considering it's supposed to be a companion to the show, I suppose that's alright. (What? That makes no sense. Oh well)
I guess more than that, what I mean is that I didn't want this book to have to use the show (other than the obvious borrowing of characters, and world-building, etc.) I wanted this book to be a fully formulated little compendium of it's own (and many parts of it were), but there were parts where the book relied far too much on the show for my taste and that's where it lost me.
Most of the book is acquired knowledge of the Avatar world, what different nations eat, the cultural practices, how different bending works, etc. And while I think that most of this information is stuff that one could glean from a careful study of the show, I think it's cute all packaged together, and it makes a great souvenir, and a cute book for fans of the show. Wrap it up in a cute little bow and give it to the fans. cool. The rest though, which was a significant, but not the majority, were stories that we had already seen in the show, from a specific character's perspective, and they werwe presented along with the other information, as anecdotal accounts of things. Now I understand why these stories were included. In many books about a specific culture or group of people, you not only have information about their practices and lives and whatnot, but you also have first person accounts describing those things from that perspective. So it does make perfect sense that Sokka would tell us a story about the water tribe, or that Toph would relate on concerning the Earth Kingdom. But to me, it just felt like a cheap way to pad a book. Can't think of new material? Rehash the same events from a new perspective. It feels tired, and I quickly grow bored of writers doing this. I think it would have been much more interesting had the writers come up with new little short stories, involving all the same characters that we know and love from the show, and simply wrote them as though they were moments we didn't get to see in the TV show.
Even though I've been a bit harsh about this book though, I have to say, I did enjoy it. It was a quick, easy and light read, and there wasn't anything new that I really learned about the world of Avatar (I've re-watched the show SOOOO many times though), but it was entertaining to visit a beloved world in a different capacity. And I simply ADORE pretty much anything Avatar. I really did like it, just wanted a teeny bit more original content is all. Oh well, still a cute read, and one I'll keep around.
EDIT: I have decided to do the Around the Year in 52 Books Challenge
This book is going to count for challenge #7 - A book about books.
The Lost Scrolls is a collection of 4 smaller "scrolls" that are supposed to be scrolls concerning the four tribes of the Avatar world, and each of these "scrolls" is basically just a compilation of information on each of the nations. However, since this book is essentially a book that is smaller books about the world of Avatar, I am counting for this challenge.
April 15, 2013
I'm not sure how I feel about rating this. In truth if it was the book alone and the show didn't exist I would've rated it lower. It takes a damn fine story and turns out a bit of mush. It's true something is lost here and I don't really know why. The stories that are retold from the show are the worst part. It's actually the biggest part and so glaringly bad it makes it harder to enjoy the book on a whole. I actually stopped attempting to read them and just remembered what it felt like to watch the episodes for the first time.
It's unfortunate because I know that by the time books like Avatar The Last Airbender: The Lost Adventures come out they've figured out how to present the Avatar universe properly, keep it interesting, fresh, new and exciting all while not treating the audience like idiots. Side note, no, I was not a fan of them redrawing the same models for male and female benders with different clothes during each scroll (book... section?) it was lame and any 12 year old would tell you that too. It's a simple concept, there's no reason you couldn't have made up brand new nameless folks to represent each kingdom. It was really patronizing and I didn't care for it.
What I do like about this is the random factoids and "behind the scenes" moments that are found between each new tale. It actually explained a few things. I had a couple "OMG I had no idea" and showed me how deep the world of bending can really be. Sadly it did end up raising more questions because of events that happen later on in this series and in The Legend of Korra but I'm not going to spoil that for everyone right here. I need to talk to someone about it and this review isn't the right place for that.
Overall the fact sections save this book. It doesn't turn it into a gem. There's way to much rehashed to do that. All the martial arts stuff can be found onthe Book One all three books available on DVD. Most of the moments that are broken down are really only there to help with the stories that are presented in the books pages - if you watched the show, you'll be fine without them. I guess I just figured out how I'm rating this book. Sad. It could've been great.
It's unfortunate because I know that by the time books like Avatar The Last Airbender: The Lost Adventures come out they've figured out how to present the Avatar universe properly, keep it interesting, fresh, new and exciting all while not treating the audience like idiots. Side note, no, I was not a fan of them redrawing the same models for male and female benders with different clothes during each scroll (book... section?) it was lame and any 12 year old would tell you that too. It's a simple concept, there's no reason you couldn't have made up brand new nameless folks to represent each kingdom. It was really patronizing and I didn't care for it.
What I do like about this is the random factoids and "behind the scenes" moments that are found between each new tale. It actually explained a few things. I had a couple "OMG I had no idea" and showed me how deep the world of bending can really be. Sadly it did end up raising more questions because of events that happen later on in this series and in The Legend of Korra but I'm not going to spoil that for everyone right here. I need to talk to someone about it and this review isn't the right place for that.
Overall the fact sections save this book. It doesn't turn it into a gem. There's way to much rehashed to do that. All the martial arts stuff can be found on
July 23, 2012
as the description notes, the Lost Scrolls Collection includes all 4 of the Sacred Tales.
while the "tales" part of the book is rather dull (being that they're just recounted from various episodes in Book 1: Water) the sections pertaining to the world of Avatar and the four nations is quite enjoyable.
if nothing more, fans of the series should pick this up, thumb past the stories and check out the extra information that wasn't all included in the cartoon.
personally i was hoping that they'd release an "Avatar: The Last Airbender and Philosophy" but with Korra up and running, i don't see that happening.
while the "tales" part of the book is rather dull (being that they're just recounted from various episodes in Book 1: Water) the sections pertaining to the world of Avatar and the four nations is quite enjoyable.
if nothing more, fans of the series should pick this up, thumb past the stories and check out the extra information that wasn't all included in the cartoon.
personally i was hoping that they'd release an "Avatar: The Last Airbender and Philosophy" but with Korra up and running, i don't see that happening.
September 1, 2014
This book contains both episode novelizations and little bits of information about each nation and its bending. The novelizations - terrible (for more information, see my review of The Earth Kingdom Chronicles Collection: Tales 1-4). The little bits of information - good. There was much to be praised, but also much conflict of canon between the show and this book. The information given for each nation, although useful, left much to be desired in day-to-day culture and practices.
Overall, I did enjoy this book.
Overall, I did enjoy this book.
May 12, 2011
The retellings of various season 1 episodes didn't add much (and, in fact, were often less interesting than the televised version of the story), but the sections that gave more in-depth information about the four societies in the Avatar world were worth reading.
January 1, 2015
I love Avatar: The Last Airbender and this books reads like the Nickelodeon animated series of the same name; it's so awesome and best of all it has the coolest characters from the franchise (unlike the new series **coughs** Korra). I love Avatar Aang, but Zuko is my hands-down favorite.
June 6, 2020
One of the best childhood books! Enjoyed it very much, and since I've watched the series first, it was amazing to have seen the show translated into narrative. The graphics are a bonus and made the pages alive!
October 19, 2021
I really loved the little bits and pieces of worldbuilding they didn't get to include in the novel! My favourite was air. Who knew the Southern Air Temple was called Jongmu? And the Air Nomad designs...omg
Are these books canon?
Are these books canon?
November 19, 2013
Although aimed at younger readers The Lost Scrolls was still a nice reference book for various aspects of the series.
March 17, 2016
An intriguing and insightful guide on the origins of each element, and of course we got to see some of our favorite characters and stories in the series!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews